In recent years, electro-optical equipment has begun to replace electronic equipment for certain applications, such as telecommunication and data communication networks. This trend should continue because the electro-optical equipment has inherent advantages over purely electronic equipment. These advantages include a broader bandwidth for signal transmission, greater storage capability for data, and inherent immunity to electromagnetic interference. Given these advantages of electro-optical equipment, fiber optic cables have become increasingly important because they transmit information and signals between the various pieces of electro-optical equipment.
The appearance of these cables resemble electrical cables, but fiber optic cables are smaller in size and lighter in weight. Fiber optic cables comprise optical fibers and other cable elements which are protected from the external environment by an external jacketing. These cables may be of a traditional design with the fibers surrounded by strength members and protective elements in the cable core or of a more non-traditional, loosely-bundled type with the fibers contained loosely within tubes or ducts in a cable core.
Whether traditional or loosely-bundled, all types of optical fiber cables may contain groups of optical fibers with no individual protective jacketing or strength members. These fibers are typically 250 micrometers or 500 micrometers in diameter. At the ends of the fiber optic cables, the small unprotected fibers must be removed from the outer protective cable structure and inserted into fiber optic connection devices (connectors or splices). Due to the small size of the fibers and the lack of protective coverings over the individual fibers, connectorization and splicing is difficult. Special protective equipment must be used to organize the loose fibers and to protect the completed connections. In order to make the installation of fiber cables reliable and efficient, a furcation unit is needed which allows individual optical fibers to be easily handled, connectorized, and spliced. Further in order to prevent degradation of the prepared fibers, the furcation unit must protect the fiber ends from moisture, dust, and other contaminants.